Depo-Provera Caused Meningioma 29 Years After First Birth Control Shots: Lawsuit

Woman must undergo lifelong medical monitoring to track the progression of a brain tumor to ensure it does not require surgical removal.

A Wisconsin woman’s product liability lawsuit alleges she received Depo-Provera birth control injections for only two years in the mid-1990s, causing a brain tumor that was not discovered until nearly three decades later.

The complaint (PDF) was filed by Jodine Ann Becker in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida on May 12, naming Pfizer Inc. and Pharmacia & UpJohn Co. LLC as the defendants.

Becker alleges that Depo-Provera birth control injections she received from 1995 to 1997 caused an intracranial meningioma that remained undetected until she developed vertigo, dizziness, hearing and vision loss in 2024.

Depo Shot Meningioma Risks

Depo-Provera, originally approved in 1992, is a hormonal birth control injection that contains medroxyprogesterone acetate, a synthetic form of the hormone progesterone. Developed by Pfizer Inc. and later released in generic form, it is advertised as being able to prevent pregnancy by inhibiting ovulation, thickening cervical mucus to block sperm, and thinning the uterine lining to prevent a fertilized egg from implanting.

Administered by a healthcare provider every three months and requiring only four injections per year, the “Depo shot” has been used by tens of millions of women over the last several decades.

In March 2024, however, a French study published in The BMJ warned that women receiving Depo-Provera injections faced a more than five-fold increased risk of intracranial meningioma, a form of brain tumor that can grow when exposed to certain hormones commonly used in birth control products.

These findings have led to a growing amount of litigation in which women have filed Depo-Provera meningioma lawsuits against Pfizer and generic manufacturers, indicating they failed to provide adequate warnings about the injections’ brain tumor risks, which can cause severe cognitive problems as well as other adverse health conditions, some of which can become life threatening.

Depo-Provera Meningioma Allegations

Becker indicates she first began receiving Depo-Provera injections in 1995, and only continued receiving the shots until 1997. For years she experienced no obvious symptoms linking the drug to any health problems.

The lawsuit claims Becker was unaware that since her injections, a meningioma tumor had been growing in her brain, undetected until 29 years later, in 2024. That year, she began experiencing vertigo, dizziness, hearing and vision loss, and the onset of menstrual irregularities.

An MRI scan revealed that she had an intracranial meningioma, which the lawsuit blames on the Depo-Provera injections from the 90s. Until the publication of the French study, Becker states she had no idea the birth control shots increased her risk of developing a brain tumor.

Becker’s lawsuit notes that, as a result, she will have to undergo medical monitoring for the rest of her life and may require brain surgery to remove the tumor if it continues to grow and becomes a danger.

“Due to the sensitive location of an intracranial meningioma immediately proximate to critical neurovascular structures and the cortical area, surgery can have severe neurological consequences. Many studies have described the potential for postoperative anxiety and depression and an attendant high intake of sedatives and antidepressants in the postoperative period.”

– Jodine Becker v. Pfizer Inc. et al.

Becker presents claims of failure to warn, design defect, negligence, negligent failure to warn, negligent design defect, negligent misrepresentation, fraudulent misrepresentation, and breach of warranty. She seeks compensatory damages for severe physical pain, mental suffering, inconvenience, loss of enjoyment of life, as well as past and future medical expenses, loss of earnings and earning capacity.

Depo-Provera Brain Tumor Lawsuits

The complaint will be consolidated with similar claims filed in federal courts nationwide in the Northern District of Florida before U.S. District Judge M. Casey Rodgers, who is leading the litigation through coordinated discovery and pretrial proceedings.

Judge Rodgers has ordered the parties to prepare five “pilot” cases for early test trials. These “bellwether” trials will give the parties the opportunity to see how juries respond to evidence and testimony likely to be repeated throughout the litigation.

However, before such trials can begin, Judge Rodgers must determine whether plaintiffs’ expert witnesses are using reliable scientific evidence to link Depo-Provera to brain tumor development. Those hearings are slated to be held from June 24 to June 26.

If the judge allows the litigation to proceed, the first bellwether trials are scheduled to begin in December. If the bellwether trials conclude without a settlement agreement or other resolution, Judge Rodgers will likely begin remanding cases back to their originating districts to be prepared for individual trials.

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